Aloha

Here Comes Everyone

Polyvinyl

Aloha is a indie mix CD maker’s dream band; at any given moment, they can act as a perfect compliment for rock, pop, electro, you name it. The band came to be by perfecting the best aspects of late ’90s/early ’00s indie rock, and on Here Comes Everyone the laundry listed influences come right out to the forefront. There’s late-period Stereolab in the lounge-y, retro sway of “You’ve Escaped,” Pinback’s circular riffs and rhythmic elasticity with “Boys in the Bathtub” and the kind of surreal headtrips in lyrics Modest Mouse has been plotting for the last decade. Aloha also doesn’t shy away from solos, from less-than-hip inspiration — the piano line on “Setting Up Shop” is deeply indebted to Elton John’s “Benny and the Jets.”

Taking the confluence of disparate material, Aloha is undeniably a progressive band, but thankfully not in the classic rock sense. Instead, the band gently pushes the boundaries of experimentalism to bring about a sound that’s extremely listenable. Whereas most avant-garde bands try to remain intentionally obscure and leave their potential audience fighting to break the surface, Aloha invites pop listeners in and offers them the opportunity to delve deeper into the complexities of music.